


Only Fools

by galacticstylinson



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Basically the stony reunion I desperately wanted but didn't get, Canon Universe, Fix-It, Infinity War, Infinity War spoilers, M/M, Marvel - Freeform, Marvel Universe, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Post-Canon, Stony - Freeform, major infinity war spoilers, mcu - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-29
Updated: 2018-04-29
Packaged: 2019-04-29 09:45:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14470011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galacticstylinson/pseuds/galacticstylinson
Summary: Steve and Tony finally meet in the fall out of Infinity War.(Or, the Stony reunion we were totally robbed of.)***THIS FIC CONTAINS MAJOR INFINITY WAR SPOILERS***





	Only Fools

**Author's Note:**

> ***FINAL WARNING ON THE INFINITY WAR SPOILERS, PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK!***
> 
> Basically Infinity War broke me and the fact we didn't get any Steve/Tony interaction hurt me more so here's my personal attempt to remedy that situation.
> 
> Before we get into it, some context; in my personal Canon Universe AU, Tony and Pepper have never been romantically involved, and instead Tony and Steve were in a happy (enough) relationship until the events of Civil War which obviously drove them apart. This is the first time they've seen each other since. 
> 
> Enjoy! xx

The throne room was dark, lit only by the moonlight washing over the Wakandan skyline and streaming in through the buildings glass walls. Taking in the view now, with its velvety sky speckled with stars and softly rolling terrain blending so gently into the forest line, Wakanda looked the epitome of peace and tranquility, and if he didn’t know better, Tony would never have believed the carnage that had taken place mere hours before hand. Fully entering the room, he let the door close gently behind him with a soft snick, signaling his presence to that figure stood with his back to him.

The once familiar silhouette was now almost unrecognizable. Hair that once would have been slicked back with utmost precision was in total disarray; his uniform, usually maintained to the perfect standard, was now ragged and worn, and what was once pale, milky skin had become weather worn and leathery, it’s soft surface now marred with scars. But still, only partially concealed by the deep crinkles around their edge, those same piercing blue eyes stared out at Tony as Steve finally turned towards him – eyes that softened as they took in Tony’s resigned, defeated form that cowered in the oversized tracksuits that had become his standard attire nowadays. 

Tony hated how in spite of everything, his heart still lurched in his chest. 

“Hey, Tony.” 

“Captain.” Tony replied tersely, swallowing heavily to choke down the lump in his throat threatening to suffocate him. Sensing the cold hostility, Steve stayed where he was, shifting uncomfortably in his spot across the room. 

“It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, well, y’know.”

Tony trailed off. Silence hung heavy in the air, the distance between them buzzing with a million unanswered questions. The room felt suffocating, as though it too was holding its breath to see what would happen next, waiting anxiously to see how this would play out. Tony could feel Steve’s eyes still fixed on the top of his head, but kept his own gaze firmly trained on the floor, trying desperately to push the sick feeling in his stomach away to get the one question he knew he needed to ask out.

“Who, uh, who didn’t –. “

He watched as Steve’s chest heaved, eyes blinking back tears. He cleared his throat.

“Bucky went first. Then Sam, and Wanda. And the Panther. Vision was – well, Thanos had got to him already.” 

The heavy weight returned to Tony’s stomach, smothering any brief flicker of relief he felt that Rhodey’s name was not among the list. Steve paused, before continuing. 

“What about on your end? Did anyone besides you – “

Tony shook his head.

“No, Strange, the Guardians, they’re all gone. Even the kid –.” Feeling hot tears beginning to build up, he trailed off, returning his gaze to the same patch of floor, determinedly ignoring the pity beginning to build in Steve’s gaze. 

“Fuck Tony, I’m so sorry.” Tony just shrugged in response, feeling his shoulders curling inwards, as though he somehow thought that maybe if he could just make himself small enough, if he could shrink himself down, he too could disappear, fade into that familiar darkness and disappear just like his teammates, his friends. Escape the hell of a reality where he was the one that survived; he, the least deserving, the one who was meant to go.

He felt Steve’s footsteps begin to cross the room before halting, clearly hesitant about what to do, scared to cross the unuttered but nonetheless present boundary. But somehow, none of that mattered to Tony anymore. 

Cause Steve was here. He was here now, when Tony was more alone than he’d ever been. He’d always been here; he always would be. And it suddenly didn’t matter what had happened in the past. Because if Tony had learnt anything, it was that life didn’t wait for you. Life doesn’t give a crap whether you’re ready to go or not. 

Tony took a deep breath, exhaling heavily, before finally beginning to move from his spot towards Steve. 

“I’m sorry about Bucky. And I’m sorry about what happened, two years ago, before – “

“No, I’m sorry Tony. That one’s on me. I should have told you – it wasn’t right – “

“You didn’t want to hurt me. I get it Steve – I understand. It’s okay. It doesn’t matter anymore. It never should have in the first place.”

He finally looked up to meet Steve’s warm, sad smile, eyes glistening as he took one final step towards Tony, the two impossibly close now, before reaching out to tentatively cup the shorter man’s cheek, brushing his thumb over his pale, grey-toned skin. 

“Why didn’t you call Tony?”

“I didn’t know what to say, where to begin.” 

A flash of silver round Tony’s neck caught Steve’s eyes, who looked perplexed as his fingers ghosted down to his collar bones to pull at the ball chain that hung there. Two dog tags, dented, warped, and slightly rusty glinted in the moonlight, each bearing a name still clearly visible in its block print. Shock flickering across his features, as his eyes darted back up to Tony’s, disbelieving.

“You kept them? All these years, you still have them?” It was all Tony could do to nod.  


“Tony, I – “

Something in Tony snapped. Years of grief hit him at once, propelling him forward, and he was sobbing into Steve’s shoulder, fisting the material of his suit in one hand as he choked out apologies, his string of incoherent mumblings countered by Steve’s soft hushes as enveloping him in a strong grasp that had Tony feeling safe, secure, comforted for the first time in years. 

They stayed like this, alone, empty shells of their former beings, clutching to one another in the empty throne room for what must have been hours, but felt more like years; two broken souls united again, at last.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry if this is like low/high-key terrible; I've legit not written in over a year cause I've been so bogged down with school work but this came into my head and I couldn't not just get it down even if just for me so, y'know, if even one other person enjoys it it's a victory in my eyes aha. Also this was written at 3am so y'know.
> 
> On a (somewhat) brighter note - my exams will be over in 5 and a bit weeks (this is terrifying to me but hey) and then I will literally have all the time in the world to write so! Maybe stick around cause the next few months should hopefully see some increased activity! 
> 
> See you all soon!


End file.
